BRIEFLY

A top executive at the Gap Inc. avoided a loss of more than $100,000 by selling 3,000 shares one month before the apparel company's stock dive this week, a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission shows. Alan E. Zimtbaum, senior vice president and chief financial officer, sold the shares between Aug. 20 and Aug. 25 at $74 to $76.50 a share. Had he still owned the stock on Monday when Gap stock plunged to $37 on news of a sales slump, it would have been worth $111,000--less than half the $225,000 he received. Zimtbaum said he did not use inside information to profit on the stock trade, a move which would have violated SEC regulations.